02-20

Ontological Robustness for Certification of Layered Autonomy Architectures

Abstract:  Learning-based control paradigms have seen many success stories with autonomous systems in recent years. A typical architecture in these systems involves layers for perception, planning and control, wherein each of these layers uses different tools and metrics for assessing robustness and performance. For example, the planners -- that use vision-based sensors to update the navigation and motion planning -- operate largely relying on distributionally robust stochastic optimal control, whereas the low-level controller can be a deterministic controller with its conventional gain and phase (time-delay) margin. We present a new analysis framework for addressing this ontology challenge inherent to autonomous systems. We derive distributional robustness guarantees for deterministic L1 adaptive controllers that can be used by any stochastic planner without facing a language barrier. The combined planner-controller framework can serve as foundation for development of certificates for V&V of learning-enabled systems. An overview of different projects at our lab that build upon this framework will be demonstrated to show different applications.

Bio: Naira Hovakimyan received her MS degree in Applied Mathematics from Yerevan State University in Armenia. She got her Ph.D. in Physics and Mathematics from the Institute of Applied Mathematics of Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow. She is currently W. Grafton and Lillian B. Wilkins Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering and the Director of AVIATE Center of UIUC. She has co-authored two books, eleven patents and more than 500 refereed publications. She is the 2011 recipient of AIAA Mechanics and Control of Flight Award, the 2015 recipient of SWE Achievement Award, the 2017 recipient of IEEE CSS Award for Technical Excellence in Aerospace Controls, and the 2019 recipient of AIAA Pendray Aerospace Literature Award. In 2014 she was awarded the Humboldt prize for her lifetime achievements. In 2015 and 2023 she was awarded the UIUC Engineering Council Award for Excellence in Advising. In 2024 she was recognized as the winner of the College Award for Excellence in Translational Research, and in 2025 she was recognized for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring.  She is Fellow of AIAA, IEEE, ASME, IFAC, and senior member of National Academy of Inventors. She has been named a Distinguished Lecturer for IEEE CSS for 2026-2028. She is a co-founder and chief scientist of Intelinair. Her work in robotics for elderly care was featured in the New York Times, on Fox TV, CNBC, and her recent NASA ULI award on flying cars led her to a live interview on Cheddar Innovates and many other media platforms. Her research interests are in control and optimization, autonomous systems, machine learning, neural networks, game theory, and their applications in aerospace, robotics, mechanical, agricultural, electrical, petroleum, biomedical engineering, and elderly care.